Petitions Over Pegasus Snooping Based On Speculations: Govt tells SC

The government told Supreme Court that the petitions seeking independent probe into the Pegasus snooping row are based on ‘conjectures, surmises and unsubstantiated’ media reports.

Outlook Web Desk

Updated on: 16 August 2021 12:39 pm

Petitions Over Pegasus Snooping Based On Speculations: Govt tells SC

Terming petitions seeking probe into Pegasus snooping row based on ‘conjectures, surmises and unsubstantiated media reports’, the government on Monday told the Supreme Court that it will constitute the expert committee to examine all the issues.

"A bare perusal of the captioned petition and other connected petitions makes it clear that the same are based on conjectures and surmises or on other unsubstantiated media reports or incomplete or uncorroborated material," said the affidavit filed by the government before the apex court.

The government said its position on the alleged Pegasus snooping has already been clarified in Parliament by IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.

With a view to dispel any wrong narrative spread by certain vested interests and with an object of examining the issues raised, it said, the government will constitute a committee of experts.

During the brief hearing, the bench said it will take up the matter at the end of board of the day's business.

On August 10, the top court had taken exception to "parallel proceedings and debates" on social media on the snooping row by some petitioners and said that there must be some discipline and they must have "some faith in the system". (With PTI inputs)